Labour Party stages gig for the Valley's youth

Julie Magee

Ribble Valley Labour Party is holding a gig called "For the Valley" to say thank you to young Labour voters for supporting the party.

The concert will take place between 7 and 11 pm on Saturday, September 16th, at the St Mary’s Centre in Clitheroe.

The idea for the gig came from father and daughter Giles and Lucy Bridge. They were talking about the General Election and the fact that opinion polls showed that 60% of 18 to 24 year olds had voted Labour.

They agreed that it would be good to organise a gig to mix politics with music and within 24 hours Lucy (18) had got three local bands to agree to play the gig to raise money for the Labour Party.

The aim of the concert is to get more young people involved in the Labour Party and a committed group of young people are now organising the event, sorting out tickets, marketing, food and souvenir t-shirts.

Well known local bands and artists have agreed to play including Palace Motion, Ruby Tuesdays, Northern Sports Club, Jack Anwyll and DJ Rachel Earnshaw.

In the afternoon, from 2 pm to 5 pm, there will also be a "economics teach in", to give young people the confidence to argue for Labour’s case on economic fairness. Labour’s youth spokesperson Cat Smith MP will discuss economic policy with young members.

Tickets for the gig will go on sale soon. More details about it are available at www.facebook.com/groups/FortheValleyLabourPartyGig/